Atytomatic-beloadutg siele



C. S. WHEATLEY.

AUTOMATIC RELOADING RIFLE.

Patented Aug. 22,1916.

4 SHEETS-S HEET I APPLICATION FILED NOV. B, i915..

C. S. WHETLEY.

AUTOMATLC RELOADING RI'FLE. APPUCATION FILED Nov. 8`. 1915.

l ,l 95,307., Patented Aug. 22, 1916.

c. s. WHEATLEY.

AUTOMATIC RELOADING RIFLE.

APPLICATION FILED NOV. 8'. i915.

1,1 959%?. PatentedAug. 22,1916.

4 SHEETS-SHEET 3.

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AUTOMATIC RELOADING RIFLE.

APPLICATION FILED NOV. 8, 1915. l ,II 95,30% Patented Aug. v22, 1916.

4 SHEETS-SHEET 4.

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f/ if 427 QC ernten.

CHRLES S. WHETLEY, 0F NEEDHAM HIEIGETS, MASSACHUSETTS.

AUTQMATIC-BELQADING RIFLE.

Specicati tere Patent. Pgtgmged filing, 229 E936,.-

Applicaticn led November 8, 1915. Serial No. 60,302.

To all whom t may concern.:

Be it known that l, CHARLES S. WHEAT- LEY, a citizen of the UnitedStates, residing at Needham Heights, in the county of Norfolk and Stateof Massachusetts, have invented certain newvand useful improvements inAutomatic-Reloading Ries; and I do declare the followingto' be a full,clear, and exact description of the invention, such as will enableothers skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use thesame.-

My invention relates broadly to improvements in firearms, and moreparticularly to automatically reloading ri'les such as those used formilitary as well as for numerous other purposes.

The most important objects of the invention are to-provide a riiie ofthe class specified which although being eiiicient and durable, will beonly of approximately the same weight as such rifles without theimprovements applied; to eliminate the use of sliding or shuntingbarrels, blow backbreeches, recoil springs and inertia weights, and yetderive the same advantages in a very simple and effective manner; toprovide loading and ejecting means operated bythe forward force of theexploding powder after the bullet or projectile has left the fire arm,and to include in the same device used for operating the loading andejecting mechanism, means for silencing the report of the arm to anappreciable extent. These objects are obtainedby the provision ofcertain novel features of construction and by unique combinations ofparts to be hereinafter fully de scribed and, claimed, the descriptivematter being supplemented by the accompanying drawings wherein:

'Figures 1 and 2 are side elevations of a rie constructed in accordancewith myV invention, with parts broken away and in section, these viewsdisclosing respectively, the normal positions of parts before firing ofthe arm, and the positions which such parts assumeJ immediately afterfiring; Fig. 3 is an enlarged detail side elevation partly in section ofthe parts at the front end of the barrel, with such parts disposed asshown in Fig. 1; Fig. 4 is a similarkview showing substantially theposition of the parts disclosed in Fig. 2; Figs. 5, 6 and 7 are viewssimilar to Figs. 3 and 4, disclosing the forwardly shiftable gastrapping member partly 1n elevation and showing the several steps 1nremoving the same; Fig. 8 is an underside view of such member; Fig. 9 isa vertical section thereof taken on the plane designated by the line 9-9of Fig. 8; Fig. l0 1s a vertical transverse section as seen on theplanedeslgnated by the line 10-10 of Fig.. 3; Figs. 11 and 12 are detailside elevatlons partly in section, showing a different formofconstru'ction al illustrating the mode of removing the for.:ardlyshiftable gas trapping member; Fig. 13 is a. vertical transverse sectiontaken on the plane designated by the line 13-13 of Fig. 11; Fig. 14 is aside elevation showing yet another form of construction; Fig. 15 is alongitudinal section thereof with parts in elevation; Fig. 16 is avertical transverse section taken on the plane indicated by the line16-16 of Fig. 15; Fig. 17 is a horizontal section viewed on the plane ofthe line 17 -17 ofv Fig. 15; Fig. 18 is a similar view showing thedifferent positions of parts; Fig. 19

is an elevation similar to Fig. 14, showing an additional manner inwhich parts ofthe invention may be constructed; Fig. 20 is alongitudinal section of the construction shown in Fig. 19 with parts inelevation; Fig. 21 is a vertical transverse section taken on the planeof the line 21-21 of Fig. 20; Fig. 22 is a top plan view of thestructure at the breech of the gun; Fig. 23 is a central longitudinalsection thereof; Fig. 24 is a detail vertical transverse section takenon the plane indicated by the lines 24-24 of Figs. 1 and 23; Figs. 25and 26 are detail vertical sections taken on the planes designatedrespectively by the lines 25-25 and 26-26 of Fig. 23; Fig. 27 is a`perspective view of the cam plate and the parts directly associatedtherewith; and Fig. 28 is a similar view of the locking block and itsarms.

In describing the invention, Ishall refer to these drawings by similarreference characters lplaced on corresponding i parts throughout theseveral views, but since the construction of thedevice D at the muzzleof the barrel B is embodied in a number of forms whereas the mechanism Mat the breech of the barrel preferably remains the same throughout theseveral types of the in vention,.such mechanism`M will be first dethedevice D coperating' with the same will be entered into specifically.

The construction of all of the breech mechanism M is shown most Vclearlyin Figs. 1, 2, 22, 23, 24, and .26, such mechanism comprising .aforwardly and rearwardly shiftable breech bolt V1 having therein anappropriate firing pin 2 and carrying a common type of extractor 3 atlits front end. As is common with devices of, this class, the pin 2 itsretracting spring, y a trigger tripped hammer 4 whose operating meansforms no part of the present invention and need not therefore be .shownor described. `The oppositeupright 'sides of the bolt 1 are providedwith longitudinal ribs 5 which are received in grooves 6 formedlongitudinally in the inner faces of the upright cheek plates 7, thelatter having any preferred type of connection with the n stock S, andone uthe bolt is provided a laterally extending stud 9 projects, saidstud being received by a cam slot 10 in Van upright elongated cam plate11 which is pivotally'mounted .at 11a between the intermediate portionsof the plates 7.

The upper edge o'f the plate 11 is shown as formed integrally with oneside of a horizontally elongated stop block 12 spaced in rear of thebreech'bolt 1, the front end of said block being disposed in closeproximity to the rear side of a transverse locking block 13. The block13 bears against the rear end of the breech bolt 1 and is received innotches 14 formed in the upper edges of the plates 7, the block inquestion being carried by a pair of parallel rearwardly extending arms15 which straddlethe block 12, their rear ends being formed withslightly elongated openings 15, through which the pivot pin 1la passes.Thus, when a cartridge is fired within the barrel of the gun, the backpressure exerted on the bolt 1 will be imparted to the locking block 13,but will not be exerted upon the pin 11a.

It is to be observed that the upper edge of the plate 11 is formed Witha substantially right-angular notch, one of Whose walls 11 standsupright in close proximity to the front side of the block 13, while itsother wall 112 extends rearwardly from said wall 11 to the rear end ofthe plate 11, being spaced below the block 13. The wall 112 is alsopositioned below one of the arms 15, a rib 118 being formed on the sideof the. block 12 opposite the plate 11 and being positioned 'beneath theother arm 15, said rib being extended forwardly from the block 12beneath -the block 13 and being positioned in the position shown in Fig.1, the upright front end of the slot 10 will allow it to move apredetermined amount without; imparting movement to the bolt 1. Thisinitia movement imparts a considerable amount of momentum to the plate11 and block 12 before the wall 112 and the rib 11" contact with thelocking block 13. The result is that said block 13 is suddenly kickedfrom its notches 14, in spite of the fact that considerable backpressure from the gun barrel may `now Ais forced forwardly against thetension of\ be exerted against said block by the breech block 1. Afterthe block 13 is thus released, the curved portion of thecamY slot 10comes into action and retracts the bolt 1, thereby ejecting a spentshell preparatory to the insertion of another. However, since theconstruction of the reloading mechanism constitutes no part of theinvention, it need not be described or illustrated inv detail. Itsvlocation is designated at 16 on the drawings. Under most circumstances,the breech bolt ris to be retracted automatically by the means yet to-be described, in which lcase the locking block 13 will be automaticallyreleased, '90 but if the breech is to be opened manually a pair ofknurled heads 17 on ,the-opposite ends of said block may be grasped,thus y allowing the cam plate to be raised to withdraw the breech bolt.'95

Projecting laterally from the lower edgeV of the cam plate 11, is acrank arm 18 having in its rear edge an arcuate notch 19 receivingtherein a stud or the like 20 which projects laterally from a rodextension 21 10a which is slidable longitudinally in a groove 22 in oneof the cheek plates 7 (see Figs. 1,

2, 24, 25 and 26), the free end of said rod being projected forwardly ofthe ammunition magazine into a tubular guide 23 bey105 neath the rearend of thejbarrel B, at which point it is secured in any preferredmanner to a plunger 24 which is mounted to reciprocate in the aforesaidguide 23, it being evident that forward movement of said plunger 11owill dispose the several parts at the breech `of the fire arm to theposition shown in Fig.

.2, thus placing the spring 25 under tension which is exerted to againreturn the several parts to their normal ,positions and at the Same timeto insert a new cartridge in place of the spent shell ejected byrearward movement of the breech bolt. For operating the plunger 24 inthis manner, the vdevice D in numerous forms has been provided. The 12odevice in question illustrated in Figs. 1 to 10 inclusive, comprises atubular guide 26 which is shown as formed integrally with the muzzle ofthe barrel B, as alined strictly with said barrel, and as having asmooth bore of greater diameter than that of said barrel, the lower sideof the guide 26 being provided with a longitudinally extending slot 27.Slidably mounted in the guide 26 'is a tubular barrel extension member28 135 forces the'plunger 24 forwardly, ejects the spent cartridge, andsimultaneously places 'the spring 25 under tension to exert its power toreturn all parts of the riie to nor- .mal position and at the same timeto insert a new Cartridge. Itis to be observed that the fejecting andreloading operations are performed by pressure exerted forwardly by theexhaust gases passingfrom the muzzle i of the barrel after theprojectile leaves the gun, the result of this movement being that the'recoil is reduced toa minimum, which result cannot be obtained by thetypes of reloading rilies in which the breech block is blown open by therearward kick exerted upon the discharge of a shell.` Furthermore, bythe exact disposition of the member 28 shown in the drawings, the reportof the rifle is muffled or silenced to an appreciable extent, the actiontaking place being very similar to that produced by the well known Maximsilencer. The member 28-is illusvtrated as having its bore enlarged atits front end to-provide a gas pocket and as having at thefront endosuch enlargement, an internal annular shoulder 30 which faces the muzzleofthe barrel' B. This is merely typical of one of the many interiorformations which may be applied to use for allowing the discharginggases to produce the desired effect.

The rod 29 may be secured to the plunger 24 by threading as disclosed inFig. 23, or in any other preferred manner, while the front end of saidrod is provided with a socketed lug 31 which extends upwardly therefromthrough the slot 27 in the guide 26 and is normally received in a pocketformed in the exterior of the member 28, such pocket being shown in thepresent embodiment of the invention in the form of a groove 32 extendingentirely around the rear end lportion of the aforesaid 4member 28 andpreferably having one undercut wall 33 which receives therein a nose'33aonv the lug 31. Leading rearwardly from the groove 32, is a channel 34while alned with such channel and formed in the-undercut wall 33 isnecessary to remove the rod 29 without lwithdrawing the member 28 fromits guide 26. Furthermore, when the member in questionstands in`theposition shown in the figures just mentioned, it may be well withdrawnwithout dislocating thev rod 29 and parts carried thereby.

When, however, the member 28 is turned to position the channel 34 andnotch 34a as or approximatel as shown in Figs. 5 to 10, the nose 33 1sretained by the undercut wall 33 and thus the parts are effectively heldtogether, but it becomes expedient to provide simple means forpreventing unintended rotation of the member 28. For.k this purpose, asocket 35 is formed in the bottom of the groove 32 at a point spacedfrom the channel and notch as clearly shown in Figs. 5- and 10, andnormally received in said socket, is one corner of a 1 ectangular catchmember 36 (see more particularly Figs. 3 and 4), the member 3.6 beingconfined in the socket of the lug 31 and being rocked to active positionby a spring ypressed plunger 37 slidable in the tubular front end of therod 29. By this means, it will be evident that the member 28 cannot berotated until the catch member 36 is disposed to the position shown inFigs. 5 and 6, for which purpose, the plunger 37 may be forcedrearwardly against .the tension of its spring by the application of anapproprlate tool such as that indicated at T in the aforesaid ing inthis posltion, the member 28 may be rotated to position the lug 31 inalinement wlth the channel 34 and the notch 34a, whereupon either therod 29, the member 28, or both, may be removed 'at will.

4 In Figs. 11, 12 and 13, a slightly'diiierent form of construction isshown in which the bore of the tubular member 28a is of uniform sizethroughout its length and is provided at its front end with a singleshoulder 30'i which is undercut to allow the exhaust gases to morereadily act thereon. In this type of the invention, the lower side ofthe member 28 is provided with a pocket 32a receiving therein a lug 31awhichrises from the front end of a rod 29a identical with the rod 29,the lug in question being slidable within the longitudinal slot 27aformed in the lower side of a tubular guide 26a which is shown as beingthreaded upon the front end of the barrel B. rather than being formed asan integral part thereof.

To normally retain the lug 31a in the pocket 32a, a spring projectedcatch member 36EL is forced normally forward into a socket 35kl hereshown in the form of a loop depending from the guide 26a.

When this catch member 36a is moved to the position shown in FigY 12 bythe insertion of an appropriate tool into the socket, the rod 29 may besprung downwardly whereupon it, as well as the member 28a, may beremoved. j Figs. 14 to 18 inclusive disclose a tubular fguide 26bidentical with the guide-26a with gures. With the parts standtheexception that a pair of upright flanges 38 depend therefromon,oppos1tesides of the slot -in its lower side. Slidable 1n the guide 26h is atubular member 28 havmg on its interior a plurality oflongitudinallyvspaced annular ribs or shoulders 30h, the member 28b having in its lowerside a pocket 32" receiving therein a lug 31" rising from the front endof a connecting rod 29b here shown as formed of two sections hingedlyconnected together at 39, the front sectlon having therein alongitudinally disposed slot 40 through which and through rectangularopenings in the flanges 38, a latch member, 36b is passed, said memberhaving a bor/e in which the headed shank 41 of a rotatable lockingbutton 42-is mounted, a spring 43 being provided to normally retainsaidl button seated within appropriate notches 1n one end of the member36", when said ,button is turned transversely of such member as shown inFig. 16, it being evident that under these circumstances, the lockingmember cannot be removed, but when the button is turned as disclosed inFig. 18, the member in question may be retracted, thus allowing thefront section of the rod 29b to be swung downwardly, whereupon theoperating member 28b may be removed at will. As shown most clearly inFigs. 16 and 18, the button 42 is normally received in notches in theouter side of one of the iianges 38 as well as in the notches' -in themember 43, it being necessary to force inwardly upon the head of theshank 41 and disengage the button from the numerous notches before itmay be so turned as to allow it to stand as shown in the last namedligure.

The form of operating mechanism illusl trated in Figs. 19 to 21inclusive, comprises a tubular barrel extension or guide 26 having inits lower sidea longitudinal slot 27, said extension or guide beinglshown as ofl a diameter corresponding to that of the barrel and ascarried by the front end of the latter as indicated at 44. Slidablelongitudinally in the guide 26, is a tubular operating member 28'havingtherein a plurality'of annular shoulders 30 corresponding to these 30",but exceeding the latter in number. The lower side of the member 28is'provided with a pocket in the form of a slot 32 in which a lug 31rises from the front end of the connecting rod 29, said lug as well asthe front end of the rod being bifurcated and receiving between theirfurcations, an L-shaped latch member 36 having a nose 45 which projectsthrough the slot 32 and normally overlies the bottom of the member 28.The nose 45 is formed on the end of onearm of the member 36 while theother end thereof is normally held in the bifurcated front end of therod 29 against the tension of a spring 46 by a sleeve 47 which isslidable on said rod and which may be moved to the right in Fig. 20lwhenthe longer arm of the member 36 is sprung inwardly thereby allowing saidmember4 to be disposed to such a position as to allow the rod 29 to beswung downwardly whereupon the member 28 may be withdrawn.

All types of the device D produce the same results as the form rstdescribed, namelyyso operating the mechanism at the breech of the gun,as to expel the shell of a spent cartridge and inject anew cartridge.

forms are positively automatic and although being very simple, they willbe eicient and durable. Several types of detachable connections betweenthe connecting rods and the gas trapping operating members 28 have beenshown, as have likewise/a number of forms of such members, but it is tobe understood that the illustration is merely typical of some of thelgreat number of ways in whichi, the numerous details of the inventionmay be constructed to produce equally good results. It is to be notedthat the several operating members project forwardly beyond theirguiding means, this being essential since it allows the attachment ofthe common type of bayonet to the end of the gun, even though it beequipped with one of the devices I claim: v

1. In an automatic firearm, a barrel, extracting and reloading means atthe breech thereof, a forwardly shiftable tubular gas trapping member inadvance of the muzzle of the barrel and alined therewith, said memberhaving a pocket opening through its outer side, a rod lyingsubstantially'parallel to the barrel and having connection with theextracting and reloading means, alugiprojecting from the front end ofsaid rod into the aforesaid pocket, and lock means for normallypreventing removal of said lug.

2. In an automatic firearm, a barrel', ex-

tracting and reloading means at the breech i thereof, a tubular guidealined with and carried by the muzzle of the barrel, a tubular forwardlyshiftable gas trapping member slidable in the guide and projectingforwardly therefrom to provide means for the attachment of a bayonet,and connecting means between said member and the extract- 4. In anautomatic firearm, a barrel, eX- 130' tracting and reloading means atthe breech thereof, a tubular guide alined with and carried by themuzzle of the barrel and having a longitudinal slot, a tubular forwardlyshiftable gas trapping member slidable' in the guide, a rodsubstantially parallel to the barrel having connection with theextracting and reloading means, a projection extending from the frontend of the rod through the slot, and a detachable connection betweensaid projection and the aforesaid member.

5. In an automatic reloading gun, a barrel, a member at themuzzlethereof shifted forwardly by the escape of gases from said barrel, a rodextending rearwardly from said member, a guideway extending rearwardlyfrom the o en breech of the barrel, a breech bolt shifta le forwardlyand rearwardly in said guideway and adapted to -actuate extracting andreloading means, a cam for, re.- tracting the bolt When shifted, saidcam having connection with the rear end of'the aforesaid rod, and springmeans for returning all parts to normal position.

6'. In an automatic reloading gun, a barrel, a member at the muzzlethereof shifted forwardly by the escape ofgases from said barrel, a rodextending rearwardly from said member, a guideway extending rearwardlyfrom the open breech of the barrel, a breech bolt`shiftable forwardlyand rearwardly in said guideway and adapted to actuate extracting andreloading means, a vertically swinging pivotally mounted cam plate forretracting the bolt when shifted, said plate having an eccentricconnection with the rear end of the aforesaid rod, a breech bolt lockoperating in conjunction with the vertically swinging cam plate andapplied when said plate is lowered to lock the breech bolt in activeposition, but released when said plate is raised, and a spring forreturning all parts to normal position.

7. In an automatic reloading gun, a barrel, a member at the muzzlethereof shifted forwardly by the escape of gases from said barrel, a rodextending rearwardly from said member, a guideway extending rearwardlyfrom the open breech of the barrel, a breech bolt shiftable forwardlyand rearwardly in the guideway and adapted to actuate extracting andreloading means, a stud projecting laterally from the bolt, a verticallyswinging pivotally mounted cam plate having a cam surface engaging thestud to retract the bolt when the plate is shifted, said plate having aneccentric connection with the rear end of the aforesaid rod, and springmeans for returning all parts to normal position.

8. In an automatic reloading gun, a barrel, a member at the muzzlethereof shifted forwardly by the escape of gases from said barrel, a rodextending rearwardly from said member, a guideway extending rearwardlyfrom the open breech of the barrel, a breech bolt shiftable forwardlyand rearwardly in the ideway and adapted to actuate extracting andreloading means, said bolt having in its rear end a notch and a studprojecting laterally into such notch, a vertically swinglng pivotallymounted cam plate having an eccentric slot receiving the stud thereinwhereby to retract the breech bolt when the plate is raised, said platehaving an eccentric connection with the rear end of the aforesaid rod,and a spring for returning all parts to normal position.

9. In an automatic reloading gun, a barrel, an operating member at themuzzle thereof adapted to be shifted forwardly by the escape of gasesfrom said barrel, a rod-extending rearwardly from, said member, aguideway extending rearwardly from the breech ofthe barrel, a breechbolt shiftable forwardly and rearwardlyin the guideway and adapted toactuate extracting and reloadmg means, a vertically swinging locking vblock contacting with the rear end of the breech bolt and having an armextending rearwardly, a transverse pivot pin p assing through said arm,and a vertically swlnging breech block retractor mounted on theaforesaid pivot pin and having a kicking surface spaced below thelocking block.

10. In an automatic reloading a barrel, an operating member at t emuzzle thereof and adapted to be forced forwardly by the escape of gasesfrom said' barrel, .a rod extending rearwardlyrfrom the operatingmember, a guideway extending rearwardly from the breech of the barrel, ahorizontal breech bolt slidable in said guideway toward and away fromthe breech, a laterally extending stud carried by said breech bolt, atransverse locking block contacting with the rear end ofsaid breechbolt, the sides of the guideway being formed with notches receiving saidblock, a pair of spaced arms extending rearwardly from said block andhaving elongated openings in their rear ends, a transverse pivot pinpassed through said openings, a vertically swinging block having itsfront end positioned contiguous to the rear side of the locking blockand having its rear end pivotally mounted on the aforesaid pivot pin,and a cam plate carried rigidly by the second named block, said platebeing eccentrically connected with the rear end of the aforesaid rod andhaving an arcuate cam surface which engages the stud on the breech bolt,said plate also having a notch in its upper edge whose lower wall isspaced below the locking block for the purpose specified.

1l. In an automatic rearm, a barrel, extracting and reloading means atthe breech thereof, a rigidly fixed tubular barrel extension projectingforwardly from said barrel that of said barrel., a tubular gas trappingIn testimony whereof I have hereunto set member housed shdably in saidextenslon my hand in presence of two subscribing witand adated to bemoved forwardly by the messes.

gas from the muzzle of the barrel, CHARLES S. WHEATLEY.

escape o and means connecting said member and said /itnesses:

extracting and reloadn means for operat- HAROLD G. WYNNE,

ing the latter when the ormer is shifted. SHERIDAN WHITAKER.

